Reading Time: 2 minutes
Any fan of crime fiction who has not yet discovered Lee Child’s Reacher books, should get started right away. Till then, there’s Season 2 of the hit web series based on the thrillers.
Jack Reacher is a man mountain (the slender and mid-sized Tom Cruise played him in two movies and annoyed fans!) who used to be with the army. After he quit, he lives like a hobo, moving around the country, with nothing but the clothes on his back and a toothbrush. When the thrift store clothes get dirty, he simply throws them away and buys another set. In the last season, he was trapped in a small town, where his brother Joe’s body was found. The villains did not know what hit them when Reacher went for vengeance. The show is not squeamish about violence, and Reacher, with his hands as big as dinner plates, can crack just about any bone of a person foolhardy enough to try to fight him, without breaking into a sweat.
In Season 2, he (Alan Ritchson) is wandering about, not minding his own business– he has just thrashed a carjacker– when he gets a coded message and rushes to Washington DC. Frances Neagly (Maria Sten), a member of Reacher’s former unit, the 110 Special Investigations military unit, has got in touch to inform him that one of their teammates was tortured and tossed off a helicopter. Of course, Reacher gets angry and wants revenge. The two reunite with other 110 team members, Karla Dixon (Serinda Swan) and David O’Donnell (Shaun Sipos), now a devoted family man. Whoever has messed with the Special Investigators cannot be allowed to get away.
They figure out that somebody is targeting the 110th and with one member dead and one missing, they could be next. There are hitmen sent to take them out, but Reacher just beats them all to pulp.
Adding more fighters to help Reacher adds a warm emotional touch to the plot–there are flashbacks to explain their friendship and absolute loyalty to one another. David with his heckling of Reacher and their non stop banter also adds the much needed humour to the otherwise dour air around the ever scowling Reacher. He does pause for a bit of romance with Dixon, temporary though it may be. But Neagly is the one who is a true buddy and always has his back– she rescued him in Season 1.
Created by Nick Santora, and based on Child’s 11th novel Bad Luck and Trouble, Season 2 is fast-paced and entertaining. The action scenes are bigger but also quicker, as Reacher is in his spare nobody mode; the other guys can barely raise a fist and they are already writhing on the ground in a bloody mess.
When sleazy defence contractors, corrupt senators and the security of the nation are involved, who can get it all sorted, but Reacher. Alan Ritchson is the right fit for the lone ranger character, and fans can hope more of the 28 odd books can be turned into very binge-worthy TV. Only Season 2 is rationing out the excitement with an episode dropping every week. But Season 3 has been confirmed, so there’s something to look forward to in 2024.
Reacher: Season 2
Created by Nick Santora
Cast: Alan Ritchson, Maria Sten, Serinda Swan,
Robert Patrick and others
On Amazon Prime VideoÂ
